Cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system

ABSTRACT

A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system includes a tray with a periphery defining regions with the planar base being common to all such regions. Informative indicia indicating a particular cyclically-occurring time period is coupled to each of the regions.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates generally to event tracking/reminder systems, and more particularly to a system that can be used to track cyclic activities such as the taking of medicine/vitamins, animal feeding (e.g., fish, turtles, snakes, etc.), or other periodic activities that may require a reminder.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

There are many routine activities that must be performed on a regular and periodic basis in order to produce satisfactory results. For example, medicine and vitamins are generally effective for their intended purpose when taken at regularly prescribed intervals. At another end of the spectrum of routine activities, most fish, turtles, snakes and other aquarium-kept animals should be fed on a periodic basis to avoid malnutrition or excessive nutrition problems. Yet another example of a routine activity requiring tracking and/or reminding is the training of children to regularly brush their teeth, e.g., twice a day.

Each of the above-described activities has a container that holds the “material” that is to be dosed, dispensed or otherwise used at regular intervals. However, other than verbiage written on the container about how and when the material is to be used, there is no means for tracking the occurrence of the activity or for reminding one when the activity is to again occur.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a system that can be used to track the last occurrence of a cyclic activity and provide a reminder as to the next occurrence of the cyclic activity.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system for use with existing containers of material that is to be dispensed or used on a regular periodic basis.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system that is easy to use by people of all ages.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system that can be positioned for easy association with the activity being tracked.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become more obvious hereinafter in the specification and drawings.

In accordance with the present invention, a cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system is provided. A tray has a periphery surrounding a planar base that defines at least a portion of each of a plurality of regions with the planar base being common to all such regions. Informative indicia indicating a particular cyclically-occurring time period is coupled to each of the regions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent upon reference to the following description of the preferred embodiments and to the drawings, wherein corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views of the drawings and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the tracking and reminder system taken along line 2-2 in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the tracking and reminder system taken along line 3-3 in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of an embodiment of a decal printed with both informative and decorative indicia used in the tracking and reminder system;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of an embodiment of a container-support puck shaped to form an indexed fit with each defined region of the tracking and reminder system;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the container-support puck taken along line 6-6 in FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a side view of a container that can be included as part of the tracking and reminder system where the container incorporates a base that is shaped to form an indexed fit with each defined region of the tracking and reminder system;

FIG. 8 is a plan view of a portion of a cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention in which the defined regions are decoratively shaped to be associated with a particular cyclic-activity;

FIG. 9 is a plan view of a container-support puck shaped to form an indexed fit with the defined regions of the tracking and reminder system illustrated in FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a plan view of another embodiment of the tracking and reminder system that further includes the hood door of an aquarium hood; and

FIG. 11 is a plan view of another embodiment of a cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system in accordance with the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring now to the drawings and more particularly to FIGS. 1-3, various views of a cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system in accordance with the present invention are shown and referenced generally by numeral 10. System 10 is made from a semi-rigid material, the choice of which is not a limitation of the present invention. For example, system 10 could be made of plastic whereby conventional injection molding fabrication techniques can be used to manufacture system 10. System 10 can be used to track a cyclic activity by indicating the timing of the last occurrence thereof, and also serve as a reminder of when the next occurrence of the cyclic activity is due to take place.

System 10 can be used as a tracking and reminder aid for a variety of types of cyclic activities without departing from the scope of the present invention. By way of illustrative example, system 10 will be described for use in the tracking and reminding of the feeding of fish. Since this is a daily occurring activity, system 10 is constructed to cover seven days. However, the present invention is not so limited as the system can be constructed for cyclic activities that must occur, for example, every hour, twice a day, once a week, once a month, etc. Thus, the novel features of the present invention are readily adapted for use in the tracking and reminding of other cyclic activities such as, but not limited to, teeth brushing, the taking of medicine/vitamins, plant feeding, etc., without departing from the scope of the present invention.

In the illustrated example shown in FIGS. 1-3, system 10 is of tray-like construction having a planar base 12 with the peripheral edges thereof defined by a raised lip 14 which can be contiguous (as shown) or discontinuous without departing from the scope of the present invention. Whether contiguous or discontinuous, lip 14 is shaped to define seven base regions 16A-16G, each of which defines a similarly sized and shaped area. That is, in the illustrated example, the regions 16A-16G are generally circular in shape. Further, in the illustrated example, lip 14 is configured so that base 12 is contiguous across all of base regions 16A-16G. This contiguous arrangement allows the application of an optional decal to base 12 as will be explained later below.

Each of base regions 16A-16G is marked with a word(s), symbol(s) or other indicia 18A-18G, respectively, that is indicative of a cyclically-occurring time period. For example, in the illustrated embodiment, region 16A could be marked with an indicia 18A that is and “S” for Sunday, region 16B could be marked with indicia 18B that is an “M” for Monday, etc. Each such indicia can be integral with (e.g., molded into) its corresponding base region, could be printed or painted thereon, or could be printed/painted on a decal 20 illustrated in FIG. 4. Decal 20 can include indicia 22A-22G that are analogous to indicia 18A-18G, and can also include decorative indicia 24A-24G (e.g., fish in the illustrated example) that can relate to the cyclic activity of interest. Decal 20 can be made on a self-adhesive material or could be attached to base 12 by any conventional means known in the art. Since regions 16A-16G are contiguous within lip 14, decal 20 can be a single element to simplify manufacturing.

Although not a requirement of the present invention, system 10 includes a tab 26 that is integral with or appended/affixed to lip 14. Tab 26 extends away from base 12/lip 14 to form a grip or handling point of system 10. For ease of manufacturing, the planar surface 26A of tab 26 and base 12 are co-planar with one another as best seen in FIG. 3. This planar surface 26A of tab 26 can also have indicia 28 displaced thereon. Indicia 28 is representative of any informative and/or decorative elements that can be integrated with, printed, painted or otherwise applied to planar surface 26A.

System 10 defines a number of place holders (i.e., regions 16A-16G) on which a container (not shown) can be placed and retained where the container holds material that is required for the particular cyclic activity. In the illustrated daily-fish-feeding-activity example, the container will hold fish food. After a feeding, the container is placed on one of the regions 16A-16G so that the most recent feeding and next feeding are clearly indicated. For example, after the fish are fed on Monday, the container could be placed on region 16B. In this way, system 10 tracks the feeding event (i.e., fish have been fed on Monday) and reminds one when the next feeding event is to take place (i.e., Tuesday in this example). While the reminder will be visual for most users, the present invention can also provide a reminder that can be discerned in a tactile sense if indicia 18A-18G can be discriminated when felt.

Since some commercially-available containers could readily slide between regions 16A-16G, the system of the present invention could further include a container support sized and shaped to rest or be indexed to each of regions 16A-16G. For the illustrated example, the container support will be a circular disk or “puck” 30 as illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6. Disk 30 is sized to form an indexed fit with each of regions 16A-16G defined by lip 14. In this way, a disk 30 cannot slide into an adjacent region. A conventional container (e.g., of fish food) 100 is attached to one face of disk 30 by means of an “adhesive” 32 that can be temporary (e.g., VELCRO, tacky putty, etc.) or relatively permanent (e.g., glue). Note that disk 30 could also be used by itself (i.e., no container attached thereto) to define an event marker used to mark the occurrence of an event being tracked.

Still another option is for the present invention to include a specially-designed container such as container 40 illustrated in FIG. 7. Container 40 includes a base 42 that is analogous to disk 30 in terms of form and function. Integrated with base 42 is a container 44 having a removable lid 46 so that container 44 can be readily filled with the desired material such as fish food.

It is to be understood that the circular shape of regions 16A-16G is not a limitation of the present invention as other geometric shapes could be utilized without departing from the scope of the present invention. For example, FIG. 8 illustrates a portion of a cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system 50 that has a planar base 52 with a raised lip 54 that substantially defines base regions 56A-56D having the geometric outline of a simplified fish. Accordingly, FIG. 9 illustrates a container support 60 (that is analogous to the previously-described disk 30 in form and function) that is sized and shaped like a fish to form an indexed fit with one of regions 56A-56D. An “adhesive” 62 that is analogous to “adhesive” 32 can be provided on container support 60.

System 10 as described above can be used as a “stand alone” item or could be coupled to another structure (e.g., attached to another structure, made integral with the other structure, etc.) depending on the particular application. For example, the illustrated embodiment could be coupled to a portion of an existing aquarium where the cyclic, fish-feeding activity will take place. Referring now to FIG. 10, the top view of an aquarium's hood 200 is illustrated with dashed lines being used for these portions of hood 200 that are not relevant to the present invention.

Briefly, hood 200 includes a seating flange 202 that rests on or is attachable to the top of an aquarium (not shown). Hood 200 will typically include a light housing 204 in which a light bulb (not shown) is mounted for shining into the aquarium. At the front side of hood 200 is a hood door 206 hinged to hood 200 by means of, for example, hinge pins 208 as is known in the art. System 10 can be attached to the top of hood door 206 or made integral with the top of hood door 206 without departing from the scope of the present invention. In the illustrated example, tab 26 is included and extends in front of hood door 206. In this embodiment, system 10 is associated with the cyclic activity being tracked and is readily available where the cyclic activity is to take place. Further, in the use of the present invention, tab 26 also serves as the lifting point for hood door 206.

As mentioned above, system 10 is merely one embodiment of the present invention as the shape, size and number, of base regions defined thereby are not limitations of the present invention. For example, twenty-four base regions could be provided if the cyclic activity is to occur hourly; fourteen base regions could be provided is the cyclic activity is to occur twice a day; fifty-two base regions could be provided if the cyclic activity is to occur once a week; or twelve base regions could be provided if the cyclic activity is to occur monthly. Further, the contiguous arrangement of base regions (e.g., base regions 16A-16G in FIG. 1) is not a requirement of the present invention as FIG. 11 illustrates a cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system 70 that has non-contiguous base regions 76A-76G defined by a common planar base 72 and a raised lip 74 extending up from base 72 to define non-contiguous regions 76A-76G.

The advantages of the present invention are numerous. Cyclic activities are readily tracked in terms of their last occurrence while the next occurrence of the cyclic activity is also identified. The system is simple and is readily adapted to a wide variety of activities. The system can incorporate informative and decorative features to improve the experience for the person performing the cyclic activity.

Although the invention has been described relative to a specific embodiment thereof, there are numerous variations and modifications that will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art in light of the above teachings. It is therefore to be understood that, within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced other than as specifically described. 

1. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system, comprising: a tray having peripheral means surrounding a planar base, said peripheral means defining at least a portion of each of a plurality of regions with said planar base being common to all of said regions; and informative indicia coupled to each of said regions wherein each said informative indicia indicates a particular cyclically-occurring time period.
 2. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system as in claim 1 further comprising a planar tab coupled to said tray and extending out from said peripheral means.
 3. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system as in claim 1 wherein each of said regions is similarly sized and shaped, and wherein said system further comprises a marker defining a footprint indexed to each of said regions.
 4. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system as in claim 1 wherein each of said regions is similarly sized and shaped, and wherein said system further comprises a container defining a footprint indexed to each of said regions.
 5. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system as in claim 1 further comprising a decal coupled to said planar base in each of said regions, wherein said informative indicia is printed on said decal.
 6. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system as in claim 1 wherein said plurality of regions comprise a specific number thereof selected from the group consisting of seven, twelve, fourteen, twenty-four and fifty-two.
 7. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system as in claim 1 wherein said tray is adapted to be coupled to the top of a hood door of an aquarium hood.
 8. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system as in claim 1 further comprising decorative indicia coupled to each of said regions.
 9. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system as in claim 1 further comprising a hood door of an aquarium hood with said tray being coupled to a top of said hood door.
 10. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system, comprising: a tray having a raised periphery surrounding a planar base, said periphery defining at least a portion of each of a plurality of regions with said planar base being common to all of said regions; a planar tab coupled to said tray and extending out from said periphery, wherein said planar base and said planar tab define surfaces that are co-planar; first indicia coupled to each of said regions wherein each said first indicia indicates a particular cyclically-occurring time period; and second indicia coupled to said planar tab.
 11. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system as in claim 10 wherein each of said regions is similarly sized and shaped, and wherein said system further comprises a marker defining a footprint indexed to each of said regions.
 12. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system as in claim 10 wherein each of said regions is similarly sized and shaped, and wherein said system further comprises a container defining a footprint indexed to each of said regions.
 13. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system as in claim 10 further comprising a decal coupled to said planar base in each of said regions, wherein said first indicia is printed on said decal.
 14. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system as in claim 10 wherein said plurality of regions comprise a specific number thereof selected from the group consisting of seven, twelve, fourteen, twenty-four and fifty-two.
 15. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system as in claim 10 wherein said tray is adapted to be coupled to the top of a hood door of an aquarium hood.
 16. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system as in claim 10 further comprising third indicia coupled to each of said regions, wherein each said third indicia is decorative.
 17. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system as in claim 10 further comprising a hood door of an aquarium hood with said tray being coupled to a top of said hood door.
 18. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system, comprising: a tray having a raised periphery surrounding a planar base, said periphery defining a linear arrangement of geometric regions in communication with one another throughout said arrangement, said planar base being common to all of said geometric regions; a planar tab coupled to said tray and extending out from said periphery, wherein said planar base and said planar tab define surfaces that are co-planar; first indicia coupled to each of said geometric regions wherein each said first indicia indicates at least a particular cyclically-occurring time period; and second indicia coupled to said planar tab.
 19. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system as in claim 18 wherein each of said geometric regions is similarly sized and shaped, and wherein said system further comprises a marker defining a footprint indexed to each of said geometric regions.
 20. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system as in claim 18 wherein each of said geometric regions is similarly sized and shaped, and wherein said system further comprises a container defining a footprint indexed to each of said geometric regions.
 21. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system as in claim 18 further comprising a single decal coupled to said planar base in each of said geometric regions, wherein said first indicia is printed on said decal.
 22. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system as in claim 18 wherein said plurality of geometric regions comprise a specific number thereof selected from the group consisting of seven, twelve, fourteen, twenty-four and fifty-two.
 23. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system as in claim 18 wherein said tray is adapted to be coupled to the top of a hood door of an aquarium hood.
 24. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system as in claim 18 wherein said first indicia further comprises decorative elements.
 25. A cyclic-activity tracking and reminder system as in claim 18 further comprising a hood door of an aquarium hood with said tray being coupled to a top of said hood door. 